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Finnish Armi Ratia honoured with a collector coin

May 24, 2012 – The Ministry of Finance has authorised Mint of Finland to release a collector coin on 4th of June to honour the founder of the textile company Marimekko. The collector coin ‘Armi Ratia and Industrial Art’ was designed by artist Kari Markkanen.

Armi Ratia (1912-1979) is still remembered as a charismatic woman, whose creative and ingenious instinct led her to great success. In 2012, Ratia would have celebrated her 100th birthday.

The new collector coin 'Arma Ratia and Industrial Art'.

‘The Armi Ratia collector coin represents the importance of open-mindedness and trust in your own abilities. These qualities are necessary to all pioneers. We are proud to release a collector coin to honour one of the most famous Finnish pioneers’, explains Paul Gustafsson, the CEO of Mint of Finland.

The obverse side of the collector coin bares the picture of Armi Ratia. The reverse side has wave-like stripes and the text ‘Armi Ratia 1912-1979’. The reverse side of the coin bares the Unikko flower, designed by Maija Isola. Following the tradition, the initial ‘M’ of the artist Kari Markkanen's surname is displayed on the coin to honour his work.

Marimekko as a life’s workThe president of the Collector Coin Committee, Professor Emeritus Yrjö Sotamaa says that the Armi Ratia collector coin beautifully honours the life’s work of Ratia.

‘The picture of Ratia in the coin brings out her determined and driven personality. The legacy of Armi Ratia is known in every Finnish home and in other countries, as well’, Sotamaa explains.

Marimekko, led by Ratia, became the pioneer for international design, because Marimekko clothes combined the cultural and the artistic values of the society.‘To become a part of the everyday life of people and to fulfil the secret wishes we all have. No more, no less – that was the vision Armi Ratia had for the future of Marimekko in those days. These words include the successes of today, as well: to bring out the secret wishes of people so they can have something to reflect on, something which they have never even dreamt of yet. It is determined courage, which Ratia had, and which is needed in life today’, says Minna Kemell-Kutvonen, the Creative Director of Marimekko.

Mint of Finland will mint 20,000 coins with the nominal value of 10 Euro in polished, i.e. proof quality, and 20,000 coins in matt, i.e. BU quality. The silver content of the coin is 925/1000 and it weighs 25.5 grams. The diameter of the coin is 38.6 mm. The collector coin can be purchased from 4. June 2012.

On the Marimekko website you will find more information on Armi Ratia.